Imagination in Narnis and Neverland

There is always one aspect of life that is essential in a person. It is established in childhood; imagination. Children have the privilege of being young enough for a certain amount of time to not let any responsibilities hinder them from learning and experiencing the world in new ways. In literature, the best way to showcase a child’s imagination is through a world entirely different from their own. Two of the most prominent fantasy worlds in children’s literature are; Narnia and Neverland. These worlds are important for they do not classify children as beings lesser than others. Instead, children are glorified and treated as equals in the different worlds. In C.S. Lewis’ The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, four siblings travel into a wardrobe and are transported to a magical realm, known as Narnia, where they discover that they must help bring the fantastical realm out of its eternal winter. In J.M. Barrie’s Peter and Wendy, the story of Wendy Darling and her brothers John and Michael is explored as a young boy who never grows up takes them to Neverland; an island where the only inhabitants are pirates and the Lost Boys. In both of these stories, there is one element in both that makes these otherwise entertaining tales into inspiring coming of age stories. This element is in the importance of the role of the absent parent. Both Lewis and Barrie eliminate the security of the parents, making the children fend for themselves in a new, strange world. These worlds are able to be fully explored as children enter them, their open minds bringing about new ideas that an adult could never even dream of. The idea of growing up is identical with the idea of cutting ties with your parents and becoming your own person. Therefore, in order ...

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... immature, childish man who does not admire Nana as a ‘nurse’, let alone a flying boy from the world known as Neverland. The very fact that both Wendy’s parents wished for her to grow up indicates that she would have never made it to Neverland for she would be closer to having the mentality of an adult rather than a child. If she were to fully listen and accept her parents’ views, she would have not had the experiences she had when she was a child. The same goes for the Pevensie children in Narnia. In order to enter the wardrobe to enter Narnia, one must have faith. Parents, being rational beings, would have immediately brought down Lucy’s claims that she entered the world. She would have believed them because they are her parents and she would think them as knowing best. When they were not there, she relied on her own thoughts of what she had seen.

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